Norther Slayer
by GrimmNika
Summary: Harley Thomas is a woman in her mid living on her own in a borough of NYC. Her entire life changes when she meets the illusive man from across the hall that blasts music at 4 in the morning. As we get to know Harley and her demons, Riley from across the hall brings some of his own into Harleys life.
1. Chapter 1

The pavement ahead of me seemed to stretch into a gloom of darkness occasionally dotted with dim streetlights. Every streetlight I passed under gave off a foreboding feeling of what lay ahead in the next interval of darkness. I think the light was what scared me the most because anything lying in wait could see me clear as day as I trudged up the sidewalks. I've always had a feeling that someone or something was watching me but I guess that was reasonable considering my neighborhood. My body began to relax as my apartment loomed up ahead under a glaring streetlight. I lived on the outskirts of Corona, New York, most people around here just call it LeFrak City. No matter what it was called, it was a rough neighborhood. I grew up around here though so I know the ins and outs of this place. Even though my apartment building wasn't the best in Queens, it was still far better than anything on the block, I felt safe as I closed the door to my apartment building. The entryway was flooded with light so you can see every corner, to the right was the super attendants' apartment and the staircase leading up. To the left was the rows of mailboxes that ran the length of the wall and on the far wall was the elevator that always seemed to be out of order. I quickly gathered my mail and made my way to the second floor to my apartment, 2B. Surprisingly it was super quite this morning, or night whichever you prefer. On a normal morning when I would come home at 3 a.m. there would be a dog barking somewhere on the top floor, a couple fighting somewhere below that, and then music blaring from the apartment across from mine, but this morning it was eerily quiet. I looked at my watch as I unlocked my door and sure enough I was way latter than my normal time, 4:15 glared back at me from my watch. From behind me I could hear the apartment door across the hall squeaking open as I pushed my way into my apartment I turned to look. A man well over six feet stood in army fatigues staring at me blankly, well I didn't expect you either elusive music man of 2A. I cocked my eyebrow at him as I shielded myself with my door.

"What?" I said as he stood motionless in his doorway "No hello from the noisy neighbor?"

He seemed to loosen at my snarky remark and grinned down at me.

"Sorry, but I was just surprised to see someone actually lived there" he said, a southern drawl prominent. On a closer inspection his hair was weird golden blonde and his eyes were a dull green but what stood out most was a scar that ran from one side of his chin to the opposite side of his temple. He stepped out from his doorframe as he realized I was staring at his scar, this made me inch my door shut a little more. He saw my movement and threw his hands up while stepping back.

"I'm Riley, I've been living here for a couple years now" he said as he leaned back against his door frame "But in these couple of years I have not once seen you leave your apartment" he stared at me expectantly, willing me with his eyes to tell him why.

"I go to school and work at night, so I'm usually asleep by now" I said but by time it left my lips I was mad for even falling for his little coaxing skills " you should really learn to keep your music down at 3 a.m. by the way" I snapped before realizing it. My willingness for wanting to tell him about myself was infuriating. I don't do people, ever.

He nodded and smiled at me. He was about to say something when his phone sounded from somewhere inside his cargo pants. He sifted through his pockets locating his phone and brought it to his ear. His eyes went to the floor and a serious expression crossed his face.

"Yea, I'm on my way down now Willow" he said into his phone as he nodded his head. This Riley guy had to be in his early thirties but he was hot. I wonder what was under those army fatigues….

He cleared his throat bringing me back from my fantasy land, he had caught me checking him out. Mental face palm was accurate right about now.

"I will try to remember that when I am getting ready for work in the morning…" he floundered for a second "What was your name again?"

My face flushed red as I met his eyes which were smiling with amusement.

"Harley" I said as I slammed my door, disconnecting myself from one the most embarrassing moments of my life.

I could hear him chuckle on the other side of the door "Nice to finally meet you Harley" he said as his footsteps resounded on the stairwell.

UGH! I inwardly groaned… could I get any more awkward? I can muse about this tomorrow, right now I need to put on sweats and a t-shirt then climb my behind into bed.

To Be Continued….


	2. Chapter 2

*BLEEP*BLEEP*BLEEP*

I rolled over onto my back as my alarm resounded throughout my tiny bedroom. Wiping the tears from my eyes I cursed my alarm for going off before I had the chance to doze back off. I reached over to my night stand and swiped my alarm off the screen of my phone. The numbers on the screen blared back at me 11:05 AM, I had no time to waste sitting about crying over nightmares.

With a grumbling stomach I made my way to my shower to get ready for my day. Today I had editing class from twelve thirty to one thirty and then magazine writing from two O'clock to four, then I worked from five to two AM. Some days seem to blend into the others but today I was feeling super out of it, probably from getting home so late this morning. I work for a distributing company over in Brooklyn slapping on labels and checking shipping manifests overnight. It isn't my ideal job but it pays the bills and fits with my school schedule.

After making my way back into my bedroom to get dressed I checked the time on my phone and it was 11:30 which meant I needed to get my but in gear. I quickly threw on cloths and started drying my hair when I heard my phone notifications go off a couple times… that's odd my phone never really goes off. As I approach my phone I can see multiple email notifications blinking on the screen, upon swiping them open I do a little happy dance.

 _ **Attn all students**_ _:_ _ **All classes and activates are cancelled for today due to a broken gas line on campus. You will be notified further on this matter about next day cancellations as soon as the issue is resolved.**_

I know it is terrible but I can't help but to be excited to have a few extra hours to slack off. I can stop by my best friend Rayna's apartment before work. I don't get to see her as often as I would like because of my schedule and plus she is married so I can't just pop up at her apartment like I used to. Which reminds me I should definitely text her before I head over there. I grabbed my phone and located the last text between me and her in my inbox.

*Me: Hey best friend! Are you busy?* I hit send and waited to see the text status say sent. I can throw on some sweatpants while I wait for her to get back to me. After changing super quickly into some comfy sweatpants I made my way into my kitchen to search for anything to eat. As I scour my cabinets and fridge for anything slightly edible I realize I have not gone food shopping in some time, well there goes that thought of eating something here.

On my way back to my bedroom I could hear voices from the hallway, me being the nosey person I am, had an urge to spy on whatever neighbor it is. I tip-toed to the door as quietly as possible so they didn't hear my footsteps approach. I braced myself against my door and pressed my face against the peep hole, it was super blurry for a couple seconds before my eyes were able to adjust. Once the hallway came into focus I spotted a petite red-head leaning against the wall directly across from my door and directly below her sat a hulking figure on the floor. I had to readjust my position looking through the peep-hole to be able to see the hulking figure on the floor. As soon as my eyes were able to focus I was shocked into stillness, there on the floor staring directly at me was Riley the music guy from 2A. I felt completely rooted to the spot plastered to my door without breathing, did is just get caught peeping? But wait he can't see me! I relaxed a little bit letting out a breath I had no idea I was holding, as the red-head said something his attention never left my door as he replied to her. Looking him over as he sat on the floor in front of his door I realized he is completely filthy, he had what looked like dirt and some little areas of dust all over his army fatigues, there was also a few other darker spots on his pant legs. He was an extremely handsome man though and the scar running across his face gave him an angelic look. His mouth turned up into a mischievous grin and he raised his hand in the air waving his fingers in my direction, this made the red-head turn her head in my direction and all over again I felt trapped… how in the world does he know I am here?! That's when I heard my phone ringing from the inside of my pants pocket. OH MY GOD! How long had that been ringing?! Quickly I fished my phone out of my pocket and hit the ignore button on my dear friend Rayna, I will inform her soon enough of what a weirdo I am and how I totally just got caught spying on my neighbor. Peeking back through my peep-hole to gauge their reactions I was met by nothing but pure darkness and then came a giant rap on my door making me jump as it reverberated the door against my face. I shrunk back from the door wide eyed, there is no way I am answering the door after that embarrassing ordeal!

"Hey Harley, I know your there, can I talk to you for a quick second?" Riley's voice boomed from somewhere at the top of my door.

No, No, No, No, can this get any more awkward?


End file.
